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Ensure Today's Data Are Readable Tomorrow

When I started with computers in the 1980s, we had
those 5 inch floppy disks—and they really were floppy. Then PCs and
DOS came along with three-inch disks (and although they were still
called floppies, there were no longer floppy). Now my new computer
doesn’t even have a floppy slot. My concern is this: I have tons of
business data stored in .doc and .xls formats on a bunch of CDs and,
for safety, I also have copies on a remotely stored big hard drive. I
also have loads of photos of my kids and grandkids stored in .jpg
format on my home computer. But will tomorrow’s computers be able to
read a CD or even my remote hard drive? Am I sounding like Chicken
Little?

No, you’re raising critical questions that, for the
most part, are being ignored by users and technology developers.
Technology is moving so fast that at some point tomorrow’s computers
and software will not be able to read today’s data. (By the way, it
may surprise you to learn that the chemicals which coat CDs have an
estimated shelf life of 5 to 10 years; after that, they will be
unreadable by any software.)

Later this year, when Microsoft is scheduled to introduce its new
Vista operating system and office suite, both the .doc and .xls
formats will be retired. However, Microsoft promises that the new
formats, which will fully incorporate Extensible Markup Language
(XML), still will be able to read the old .doc and .xls formats. My
question is, though: For how long?

I think it’s safe to assume that each major software advance will be
compatible with at least the immediate two or three past technologies.
So if you want to protect your digital data, keep your software up to
date and recopy all your archived data into the new format every time
you upgrade.

Important : I’d advise against skipping even one technology
upgrade. If your archive is more than one technology step behind, you
may find that not all your data are upgradable or digital errors are
introduced when you do copy them.

Is such a process tantamount to wearing a belt and suspenders? Yes,
it is a very conservative approach. But aren’t the snapshots of your
grandkids worth it?

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